Handmade bricks, clinker and terracotta from the last ring kiln still in operation in Austria, located in Pottenbrunn
Ziegelwerk Nicoloso
3140 Pottenbrunn (St. Pölten), AustriaNew on Amplifa
About Ziegelwerk Nicoloso
Ziegelwerk Nicoloso in Pottenbrunn near St. Pölten is a family manufactory that produces handmade bricks, clinker, facing bricks, floor slabs, Cotto/terracotta and clay products. The family learned the brickmaking craft around 400 years ago in Italy; production in Austria is now in its 3rd generation. Some bricks are shaped by hand, and firing takes place in the ring kiln built in 1867 according to the Hoffmann system – the last of its kind in Austria that is still in operation. The product range includes standard, vintage, smoked, glazed, Sk1n facade and Corso long-format clinker (in part in cooperation with the Italian family business Fornace S.Anselmo), perforated facing bricks, fireplace systems, wine storage bricks, clay bricks and clay powder, as well as reprocessed old building materials. Special formats, colors and surfaces are made to customer order, also in cooperation with the Federal Office for the Protection of Monuments for listed buildings. Reference projects include Melk Abbey, the Orangery of Schönbrunn Palace, the Vienna Observatory and the Vienna Arsenal, as well as cemeteries in Vienna and Graz.
- Site
- Pottenbrunn
- Processes
- Firing hand-shaped bricks in the ring kiln (Hoffmann system), Extrusion process for clay bricks (green bricks), Production of clinker/facing bricks partly by hand (special formats, colors, surfaces on, Glazed clinker – glaze as protective and decorative layer, customer-specific colors and textures, Antiquing/tumbling of vintage clinker after firing, Production of cotto/terracotta floor tiles (drying and hard firing in the kiln), Facade clinker SK1N – terracotta elements screwed dry onto wood/aluminum frames, Milling dried clay bricks into clay powder (for clay plaster, fill, clay screed)
- Materials
- Loam, Clay, Terracotta, Clinker, Terracotta/faience ceramics, Murano glass, Fireclay brick, Clay bricks – green bricks (bulk density 1.95 kg/dm³)
- Industries
- Construction industry, Architecture, Heritage protection / restoration, Garden and landscaping, Wine storage / wine cellar construction, Art and craft
- 01
Clay/loam preparation
- 02
Shaping (by hand or extrusion)
- 03
Drying
- 04
Firing in the ring kiln or kiln
- 05
Surface finishing (glazing, tumbling/antiquing)
- 06
Processing/grading
- 07
Consultation and delivery
Materials & Processes
Clay
Basic material for clinker, facing bricks, floor slabs and hand-shaped bricks fired in the ring kiln.
Loam/Clay Earth
Pure natural building material for unfired clay bricks (green bricks), clay powder and terracotta/cotto tiles.
Terracotta
Unglazed, hard-fired clay ware for cotto flooring, facade elements and vintage clinker.
Terracotta & Faience Ceramics
Handcrafted special formats and architectural ceramics in nearly any shapes, sizes and colors.
Clinker
Hard-fired facing bricks for facades, walls and floors, indoors and outdoors, also glazed.
Murano Glass
For transparent, colored glass blocks and glass bricks in architecture.
Glaze
Protective and decorative layer on glazed clinker with customer-specific colors and textures (e.g. water droplets, craquelé).
Location
Pottenbrunn (St. Pölten)
ATBrickworks: production, sales, factory tours
- Materials
- Clay, loam, terracotta, clinker
- Hoffmann ring kiln (1867)
- Extrusion line for clay bricks
Brick Products
Inside the production
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Firing hand-shaped bricks in the ring kiln (Hoffmann system)Heat treatment | – | – | – | – | Clay, Loam, Terracotta |
| Extrusion process for clay bricks (green bricks)Forming | – | – | – | – | Loam |
| Production of clinker/facing bricks partly by hand (special formats, colors, surfaces onForming | – | – | – | – | Clay, Loam, Terracotta, Ceramics |
| Glazed clinker – glaze as protective and decorative layer, customer-specific colors and texturesSurface | – | – | – | – | Terracotta, Ceramics, Glaze |
| Antiquing/tumbling of vintage clinker after firingSurface | – | – | – | – | Terracotta |
| Production of cotto/terracotta floor tiles (drying and hard firing in the kiln)Heat treatment | – | – | – | – | Loam, Clay, Terracotta |
| Facade clinker SK1N – terracotta elements screwed dry onto wood/aluminum framesAssembly | – | 500 mm × 220 mm × 40 mm | – | – | Terracotta, Wood, Aluminum |
| Milling dried clay bricks into clay powder (for clay plaster, fill, clay screed)Other | – | – | – | – | Loam |
| Reprocessing old building materials: sorting, cleaning, knocking and dusting reclaimed bricksOther | – | – | – | – | Facing bricks, Roof tiles, Floor slabs |
| Terracotta and faience ceramics handcrafted (special formats, breeze blocks,Other | – | – | – | – | Loam, Clay, Terracotta, Faience, Murano glass |
| Corso long-format clinker using the waterstruck/soft-mud process (water-effect surface)Forming | Tm (10/4/3 mm) | 500 mm × 100 mm × 40 mm | 4 kg – 5 kg | – | Terracotta, Clay |
2 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ring kiln (Hoffmann ring kiln, Hoffmann system, built 1867) | – | 1 | – | 1867 | Pottenbrunn, Austria |
| Extrusion line for clay bricks | – | – | – | – | Pottenbrunn, Austria |
Additional services
Reference customers
History
- rund 400
The family learned the brickmaking craft in Italy; production in Austria is in its 3rd generation
- 1867
Construction of the ring kiln (Hoffmann system) by master miller Zifferer; the last ring kiln of this kind still in operation in Austria
- 2000
Production of the floor slabs for the Lower Austrian State Exhibition at Melk Abbey as well as the floor bricks for the Orangery of Schönbrunn Palace
- 2004
Press article NÖWPD: bricks from Pottenbrunn serve heritage protection